USHER - USHER AXES 'SEMI-RETIREMENT' TO PICK UP AWARD

R+B star USHER had to pull himself out of "semi-retirement" to pick up his Male Of The Year award at British magazine GLAMOUR's annual ceremony in London last Tuesday (07JUN05).

The YEAH! heart-throb was all set to take a break from the spotlight, following the phenomenal success of his award-winning CONFESSIONS album last year (04).

But the 26-year-old says, "When I got the call I had just finished promoting my album and decided I wasn't doing any more shows or photo shoots.

"I just wanted to lay low and use this time to relax and eat bad food and sleep late.

"But when I was told I was being made Man Of The Year and I was going to be on the cover of Glamour I was like, 'Are you serious?'

"So I practically came out of semi-retirement to do this - that's how excited I am."